As this is my second sports-related post in a row, you might be thinking “What’s happening with James? Where are the show tunes and theatre reviews you’ve come to associate with me and this blog?”
The truth is I don’t really have much of a sports gene. As a child I was never naturally gifted in that area. As well as being a little uncoordinated (I’ve always been hopeless at catching balls),I’ve also always been a little more of the “sensitive kind” (not really into the boysy culture of team sports). I was never one for football or soccer as a child, preferring tennis.
But in recent years I’ve developed an appreciation of some team sports. I’ll watch cricket from time to time. I’ll occasionally watch a rugby league match. I’ve been watching a few of the matches in the World Cup. And in the last couple of years I’ve developed an interest in ice hockey.
There’s a couple of things I really like about hockey. Because it’s fast, you really appreciate the skills of the players, with their capacity to respond quickly, thus demonstrating strong hand-eye coordination, as well as physical strength. And because it’s fast, the involvement isn’t too great, only an hour or so in actual playing time. I could never imagine watching an AFL match, as they seem to go on for days and days.
Here’s some photographs from today’s match in Sydney, with the Sydney Bears playing Adelaide Adrenaline. You can also listen to a bit of audio of the rock of the eighties soundtrack, and the competing chants of the teams.
In other ice-related news in Sydney, once again we have an ice skating rink in front of St Mary’s Cathedral. It was seventeen degrees celcius (above NOT below) when I snapped these photographs yesterday.
